In the present study we tested the dose andh time dependence of the antinematodal effects of carvacrol and tyhmol on Caenorabditis elegans, and the efficacy of carvacrol, thymol, p-cymene and cinnamaldehyde,which were administrated in the drinking water of rats naturally infected with the pinworm Syphacia muris. The control treatment of the infected rats was carried out with piperazine. Thymol caused a dose and time-dependent mortality in adult C. elegans. The value of the Median Lethal Concentration (LC50) of thymol was 117.9nM after 24h and 62.89 nM after 48h of exposure. Carvacrol exhibited a higher antinematodal efficiency than thymol. The LC50 of carvacrol, after 24 hours of exposure, was 53.03 nM, while after 48 hours it was 33.83 nM. On the other hand, piperazine showed an extremely high efficacy against S. muris infection in rats. Piperazine, at a dose of 625 mg/kg bw, administered in drinking water continuously for 10 days, eliminates the infection completely. However, none of the investigated active ingredients of essential oils were effective against S. muris. The reason for the lack of efficiency may be due to their pharmacokinetic properties. A relatively low amount of, orally administered, active ingredients of essential oils reaches the distal segments of the gastrointestinal tract, where S. muris inhabits the gut (colon and cecum). The obtained results, on C. elegans, indicate a clear dose and time-dependent antinematodal effect of thymol and carvacrol. However, for clinical application, it is necessary to examine the efficacy of microencapsulated formulations with a controlled release of active ingredients of essential oils in certain parts of the gastrointestinal tract.

Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by Coxiella burnetii, a gram-negative coccobacillus, which has been detected in a wide range of animal species, mostly domestic ruminants, but also in wild mammals, pets, birds, reptiles, arthropods (especially ticks), as well as in humans. Although the exposure to domestic animals in rural areas is regarded as the most common cause of the disease in humans, recent studies have shown that the role of pets in the epidemiology of Q fever has been increasingly growing. Although the primary route of infection is inhalation, it is presumed that among animals the infection circulates through ticks and that they are responsible for heterospecifi c transmission, as well as spatial dispersion among vertebrates. The aim of this study was to determine the presence and prevalence of C. burnetii in ticks removed from stray dogs, as well as to examine the distribution of tick species parasitizing dogs on the territory of Belgrade city. A PCR protocol targeting IS1111 repetitive transposon-like region of C. burnetii was used for the detection of C. burnetii DNA in ticks and the results were confi rmed by sequence analysis. In total, 316 ticks were collected from 51 stray dogs - 40 females (78.43%) and 11 males (21.57%). Three species of ticks were identifi ed: Rhipicephalus s anguineus (72.15%), Ixodes ricinus (27.53%) and Dermacentor reticulatus (0.32%). Out of 316 examined ticks, C. burnetii DNA was detected only in the brown dog tick R. sanguineus, with a total prevalence of 10.53% (24/228) . The high prevalence of C. burnetii in R. sanguineus, which is primarily a dog tick, indicates the importance of dogs in the epidemiology of Q fever in the territory of Belgrade.

Inflammation of the mammary gland, mastitis in cows, presents one of the most acute problems in intensive dairy production, inflicting huge economic losses. In the course of one year, 80 samples were taken at investigated farms from udder quarters of cows with clinical mastitis and 160 samples from udder quarters of cows with subclinical mastitis. The efficacy of three preparations, A, B, and C, was examined in the treatment of clinical and subclinical mastitis in cows. The investigations indicate that antibiotic preparation A (neomycin, polimixine B, oleandomycin and prednisolone) exhibited a greater efficacy in the treatment of clinical mastitis caused by Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Streptococcus uberis and Micrococcus sp., but a smaller efficacy in the treatment of subclinical mastitis caused by Staphylococcus aureus. Preparation B (amoxicillin, clavulanic acid and prednisolone) exhibited a higher efficacy in the treatment of clinical mastitis caused by Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Streptococcus uberis and Micrococcus, but a weaker effect in the treatment of subclinical mastitis caused by Staphylococcus aureus. Preparation C (procaine penicillin G, streptomycin, neomycin sulfate and prednisolone acetate) exihibited efficacy in the treatment of clinical and subclinical mastitis caused by Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Streptococcus uberis, Micrococcus, Staphylococcus aureus and Esherichie coli. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. III 46002: Molekularno-genetička i ekofiziološka istraživanja u zaštiti autohtonih animalnih genetičkih resursa, očuvanju dobrobiti, zdravlja i reprodukcije gajenih životinja i proizvodnji bezbedne hrane

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The estrus cycle of bitches is divided into four phases: proestrus, estrus, diestrus and anestrus, during which different morphological changes, and also cyclic changes of estrogen and progesterone receptors are present. Several pathological changes can be differentiated on the endometrium, but one of these is the most important - cystic endometrial hyperplasia, which frequently develops into pyometra. The aim of the present study was to describe morphological characteristics, and expression of estrogen and progesterone receptors on the endometrium of mixedbreed bitches during the different phases of the estrus cycle, cystic endometrial hyperplasia and pyometra. The uterus and ovaries of 36 mixed breed bitches in different phases of the estrus cycle and also with cystic endometrial hyperplasia (CEH) and chronic purulent endometritis - pyometra were examined macroscopically, histopathologically, and immunohistochemically for estrogen receptors (ΕR) and progesterone receptors (PR). During proestrus uterine cells showed a weak reaction for both estrogen and progesterone receptors, but during estrus a large number of uterine cells showed a strong reaction on estrogen receptors and moderate reaction on progesterone receptors. On the contrary, during diestrus the scores for the estrogen receptors decreased, while the progesterone receptors level increased - uterine cells expressed strong reaction for progesterone receptors, and moderate reaction for estrogen receptors. Uterine cells in cystic endometrial hyperplasia expressed a strong reaction for estrogen receptors, and moderate reaction for progesterone receptors, but on the other hand the uterine cells in the uterus with pyometra expressed a moderate to strong reaction for progesterone receptors, and a weak reaction for estrogen receptors. In further investigations it would be interesting to perform quantitative analysis for both estrogen and progesterone receptors during different phases of the estrus cycle and also in the uterus with cystic endometrial hyperplasia and pyometra.